You want to save. You swear you’re going to save. But you said that last year, too, and your bank account doesn’t look much healthier.

Saying “I need to save” means you’ve recognized a basic financial fact: You need to take responsibility for your financial life. You really intend to do it – one of these days. (Read: Sometime between next week and never.)

Or maybe you’re just financially overwhelmed, especially if you haven’t gotten a raise lately or if you’ve undergone a spell of unemployment. It’s easy to convince yourself that you’ll save “later.”

The best time to start saving money? Ten years ago. The second-best time? Today.

Want 2014 to be the year you turn things around? Four simple tactics can make all the difference. Here’s what Money Talks News money expert Stacy Johnson has to say on the subject. Once you’ve watched his video, read on for more information.

Step 1: You need a goal

The first thing to do is set a specific goal. “In 2014 I’m going to start an emergency fund” or “I resolve to have a healthy bank account this time next year” are both fatally vague. How much of an EF? What’s a “healthy” account? Try this instead: Pick a specific sum. It could represent, for example, your emergency fund, the cost of a long-deferred vacation or a down payment on a house. Your choice.

You could divide that amount by 12 and put that result into savings each month. Or you could divide that goal by 52. Why 52? Because a small, weekly savings plan is less traumatic than a once-a-month withdrawal. You learn to live on what’s left week by week, vs. losing a (relatively) big chunk all at once.

Let’s start with an easy example: the $500 that personal finance writer Liz Weston recommends as a starter emergency fund. Divide $500 by 52 and you get $9.61, which rounded up makes $10.

Step 2: Pay yourself first

The old saw holds true: Pay yourself first. Otherwise that “extra” $10 will get spent on something nonessential, like a pizza.

Or even for something essential, like rent. Paying yourself first forces you to get smarter about the way you let money slip away each month.

Step 3: Automate

Automate a weekly withdrawal of $10 (or whatever your selected amount is) from checking to savings. Why automate it? Because that way it’s sure to happen every week or month. Treat your savings like any other bill – utility, credit card – that you pay online.

Let’s turn that idea on its head: If you had an emergency, how would you find the however-many-dollars it would take to fix things? Better to sacrifice $10 a week than to have to come up with $300 all at once.

Even if you’re not in that situation, you’ll need to find ways to set extra money aside to meet your goal. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Pick up extra work. If extra hours on the job aren’t available, you can find other ways to earn more money. Dog walking, house cleaning, lawn mowing, delivering newspapers and the like are all tried-and-true methods. Try thinking outside the box, though. I once interviewed a woman who walked several neighborhood kids to school; since she had to walk her own daughter, she was earning money for doing something she did every day. Smart.

Cut back on eating out.Way back. Cooking at home is much, much cheaper. Can’t cook? Go online or to the library for easy recipes. Do this gradually if you’re a total restaurant junkie. For instance, cook two times a week at first (and make the meals big ones so you’ll have leftovers to carry to work).

Look for savings elsewhere. For instance, find ways to save on car and homeowners insurance.

Use coupons. Sites like CouponMom.com and Favado do the work for you by matching coupons (often downloadable) to sales at supermarkets and drugstores. (I never pay full price for toiletries.) Incidentally, there really are coupons for healthy foods, including organic products.

Try one new tactic at a time until you’re confident you can pry that $10 — or whatever amount you’ve picked — from your budget. Watch that savings account creep up. If through luck or diligence you find a little extra money in the budget some weeks, shoot it over to savings.

Pat yourself on the back (just a little), but don’t consider the matter closed. Instead, keep looking for ways to increase your savings. Even if it’s only $11 a week instead of $10, that’s an extra $52 per year. (Hint: Slow growth is better than no growth.)

Yes, it can be tough. But it gets easier, or at least becomes second nature to pay yourself first. If times are tight, don’t let that undermine a better future – and that future starts now.

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Comments & discussion

We welcome your opinions, but let’s keep it civil. Like many businesses, we reserve the right to refuse service to anyone. In our case, that means those who communicate by name-calling, racism, using words designed to hurt others or generally acting like an uninformed bully. Also, comments that include links to email addresses or commercial websites typically aren't posted. This isn't a place to advertise your business.

Ralph Hedges

Having experienced a serious reduction in my income over the past dozen or so years due to deregulation, sequestration, etc.. I have done some serious daily budgeting examination. Years ago, paying off expenses, credit cards, loans and living expenses was not difficult. But with these expenses continuing and income deteriorating, savings has not been an option. My income is now increasing to an interesting degree. So, my question has been, do I ‘pay myself first’ or pay off my obligations first? I have chosen the latter as my current goal. My reasoning is the expense of the percentage charges built into loans of any kind is a drain on my income. If I establish a savings account the interest earned does not in any way offset the expenses of the interest charges on loans. My credit cards will be pain in a matter of a few months, then extra payments will go to paying off my car, which then is my savings account since my car will have increased its equity for me. Then a savings account will be in order! Make sense?

http://www.moneytalksnews.com/ Stacy Johnson

Makes perfect sense, Ralph!
The primary reason to marshall cash is to have funds in reserve in the case of an income loss. If you feel your income is now secure, you’ve got the order right: first bills, then savings.